OECD Centre for Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability and Equal Opportunity

OECD has established a Centre for Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability, and Equal Opportunity (WISE). The WISE objectives have much in common with the priorities of the recent report on the  EcCoWell  Community Recovery Program. The note below discusses these common objectives.

Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability, Equal Opportunity:

EcCoWell and WISE: A Comparison

Peter Kearns

OECD has established a Centre for Well-being, Inclusion, Sustainability & Equal Opportunity (WISE). As the WISE objectives have much in common with the priorities of the recent PASCAL EcCoWell report on Community Recovery, this note comments on the shared objectives of the two programs, and suggests some areas where EcCoWell and WISE can contribute to the future development of each program. 

Both the EcCoWell report and the WISE launching statement point to “the many socio-economic divides fracturing our societies, and deepening these divides by hitting the most vulnerable hardest. (OECD 2020:1). While the responses of both EcCoWell and WISE have certain objectives in common, there are also some differences that could add value to each.

1. Well-being

Both EcCoWell and WISE gave top priority to well-being.

• The EcCoWell top priority was “{supporting individual well-being in adjusting to on-going change (EcCoWell 2020:51);
• “Putting people’s well-being at the top of the agenda” (OECD 2020:1).

There are some differences in the way this objective will be progressed. The WISE approach included:

• Getting people and governments on the same page;
• Measuring what matters;
• Getting everyone a stake in growth;
• Create conditions that allow everyone to start life on an equal footing (OECD 2020:2-3).

The WISE approach leverages the OECD Inclusive Growth framework with a multi-dimensional approach to well-being across the various sectors in a holistic way (OECD 2020:2). WISE also draws on the OECD Better Life Index.

This is a key similarity : both EcCoWell and WISE draw on interaction and integration as the pillars of the program to add value.. In the case of EcCoWell, this holistic approach goes back to the origins of the program in PASCAL work on learning cities in 2012 (Kearns & Reghenzani-Kearns 2019). This approach was taken up by a number of learning communities with leadership from the Cork learning city. The initial phase of the EcCoWell program had a focus on integration of learning, health, and environment which underpinned the UNESCO Cork Call to Action on Learning Cities adopted by the UNESCO Third International Conference on Learning Cities which Cork hosted.

The EcCoWell approach to well-being also flows across the six pillars of the framework set out in the EcCoWell report. The first pillar in the framework adopted outlines the general approach adopted. This is described as a “psycho-social” approach that addresses mental health and well-being issues with intimate connections to community development. Learning neighbourhoods are seen as “small societies” adopting an approach set out in a recent paper by Makino made available to participants (Makino, 2020).

Fostering empathy as a driver and outcome of well-being was a feature of the EcCoWell Community Recovery report. This included the concept of “a new model of partnership with empathy” set out in the Wyndham learning city report. The focus on empathy went along with a cluster of things to support well-being in an era of radical change that included imagination, transformative learning, harnessing the arts, and creativity.

Meeting the needs of ageing populations was the only sectoral aspect of generational well-being taken up although the need to foster relations between generations was recognised. This subject is more fully discussed in a paper prepared for the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning which is to be published by UIL.

2. Inclusion

The WISE approach to inclusion has a focus on equal opportunity policies with measurement supporting good practice development. A priority is given to early childhood development. 

One of WISE’s priorities is to create conditions that enable everyone to start life on an equal footing. Inequalities in our societies are very often rooted in early-life disadvantage (OECD:3).

OECD draws on data from the 2019 report Changing the Odds for Vulnerable Children and the OECD Child Well-being Data Portal.

The EcCoWell approach to inclusion is more diffuse and relies heavily on psycho-social aspects such as the key role of local learning neighbourhoods, and changing attitudes and values over time. The empathy thrust in the report provided a psychological base in the development of inclusive learning neighbourhoods with strengthened community spirit and social cohesion. This was seen as “ground up” response to the needs of vulnerable groups (EcCoWell:63) The key role of community centres, colleges, and cultural institutions was seen as important in the EcCoWell report with the Harlem New York, Datong Taipei, and the Beijing reports providing examples of good inclusive approaches in local districts and neighbourhoods.

3. Sustainability

Both WISE band EcCoWell saw sustainability as a key objective. In the case of WISE “making a fairer transition to a green economy” brought together inclusion and green policy packages (OECD 2020:3). The objective of” giving everyone a stake in growth” was seen as a foundation of a sustainable future.

While the EcCoWell report and briefing papers recognised the importance of environment and progressing to a sustainable green economy, the EcCoWell report also took some psycho-social aspects of building a sustainable future including “promoting understanding of global interdependence”, along with the priority given to empathy.

Changing attitudes to environment, global warming, and poverty is clearly important in building a sustainable future. EcCoWell principles can flow across to collaborative action to address poverty as in the Glasgow University report on the work of its Centre for Sustainable, Healthy and Leaning Cities and Neighbourhoods in which a consortium of nine research partners in eight countries to address aspects of poverty in eight countries in Africa and Asia (EcCoWell 2020:52-54).

Networks of learning cities, such as the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities (GNLC) can contribute much in building understanding and knowledge to support a sustainable future. Several participant reports in the EcCoWell report took up environmental aspects of a sustainable future. These included the Datong Taipei report which was directed at “building Taipei City as an Eco-city and Happy Farm” (EcCoWell 2020:37-41).

The Harlem New York report also took a broad forward looking approach in “integrating faith, the arts, and eco-justice“ (EcCoWell:43).  The Justice Seed-bed project described in the report illustrated this approach with its focus on strategies to cultivate community dialogue and build understanding of environmental issues affecting the neighbourhood. This initiative aimed at integrating faith, spirituality, the arts, eco-justice and transformative learning built community resilience and sustainability by “lifting the human spirit-defining purpose, making meaning, and generating connections while addressing emotive, embodied, spiritual and transformative aspects of what it means to be human in a more-than-human context?” (EcCoWell 2020:50).

4. Equal opportunity

WISE is able to draw on significant OECD work on equal opportunity over the years. The current focus is shown as a multi-dimensional approach to well-being “with the aim of allowing policy-makers to ensure equal opportunities for all people, communities and companies to contribute and gain from economic growth”. (OECD:2). The significance given to early childhood development has been noted above.

While the EcCoWell report did not examine equal opportunity from the perspective of the education sectors, it did include a lifelong learning perspective that brought in the question of opportunities for older people in the transition to a technology-driven longevity society.

The comparison overall

Overall, both WISE and EcCoWell bring complementary perspectives that reflect the policy and learning city approaches of each. Both are directed at integrated/holistic approaches to the key objective of well-being in inclusive sustainable communities whether at the national, city, or neighbourhood level. This difference in perspective is reflected in the strength of each- WISE in measurement and analytical aspects, EcCoWell in community aspects, especially in building regenerative communities to support well-being and inclusion in local neighbourhoods.

The WISE model points to some desirable directions for learning cities. There is a need for further research and development projects, in a range of contexts, and especially at the neighbourhood and city levels, to examine how these communities can adapt to the turbulence of the transition to a technology-driven longevity society in ways that enhance the well-being and sustainability of these communities.              

References

Kearns, P. & Reghenzani-Kearns, D. (Eds.). 2020. Connecting Up in a World of Turbulent Change: Report of the PASCAL EcCoWell Community Recovery Program. Available at: http://pascalobservatory.org/sites/default/files/connecting_up_in_a_world_of_turbulent_changenov2020.pdf. [Accessed 25 November 2020].

Kearns, P. & Reghenzani-Kearns, D. 2019. Building Good Sustainable Learning Communities through the EcCoWell Approach. Available at: http://cradall.org/sites/default/files/WP501_2019.pdf. [Accessed 30 November 2020].

Makino, A. 2020. Inventing the New Concept of “Learning” for the Era of the 100-Year Life in Japan. Available at: http://cradall.org/sites/default/files/wp_801_2020_0.pdf. [Accessed 2 December2020].

OECD. 2020. Putting People’s Well-being at the Top of the Agenda. Available at: https://www.oecd.org/wise/Peoples-well-being-at-the-top-of-the-agenda-WISE-mission.pdf. [Accessed 25 November 2020].